According to press reports on Sunday, Major General Abdel Fattah Younes, head of the rebel forces army in Libya, was killed in the fighting in Brega area some 10 days ago in what was described as "mysterious circumstances."

Younes, who served as Secretary of the General People's Committee for Public Security and a number of other important positions joined the rebels at the beginning of the crisis. Earlier this month, Younes expected that Libyan leader Colonel Muammar Gaddafi will use poisonous gas against opposition fighters, to prevent their progress in the direction of the oil city of Brega.

It is worth mentioning that there were differences between some rebel leaders and Younes as some rebels claimed he was responsible for killing and injuring hundreds of people in front of Italy's consulate in Benghazi in 2006. This incident was related to a protest against the publication of cartoons depicting the Prophet Mohammed.